Portable self-service bar code marker and reader for purchase monitoring

ABSTRACT

A purchase monitoring device, to be used by a shopper in a self-service store having items with bar codes thereon which identify the item and the price thereof, the device including primarily a portable handset having a bar code scanner which enables pricing and identification data of a selected item to be displayed on an LED display of the handset, and through the selective use of a price check button, a purchase button, and a return button, the price of the item may be checked, added to a running total of purchase items, or removed from a running total of purchased items, the list of purchase items being stored within the handset for subsequent transfer to a data reception register of the store for payment and verification that all items designated as purchase items are truly purchase items by quickly verifying if the item has been designated as a purchase item by the handset during scanning of the item. In one embodiment of the invention, time-active ink is used to mark the bar code.

This application is a continuation-in-part to the now allowedapplication filed Mar. 25, 1993 and given Ser. No. 08/036,970, nowissued as U.S. Pat. No. 5,345,071 which is a continuation-in-part to theapplication filed Jul. 23, 1992 and given Ser. No. 07/903,716, nowabandoned, which in turn is a continuation-in-part to the now abandonedapplication filed Apr. 27, 1992 and given Ser. No. 07/873,770.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a purchase monitoring device, to beused by a shopper in a self-service store to scan the price of selectitems and designate, when desired, that the item is a purchase item, andto store a list and running total of the purchase items for subsequenttransfer to a data reception register for verification and payment,thereby providing an effective means of enabling users to be aware ofhow much they are spending in order to help them to stick to a budgetand to expedite the store checkout procedures by not requiringindividual checkout scanning of each item.

2. Description of the Prior Art

When shopping a self-service store such as a supermarket, consumersoften encounter a number of inconveniences. One of these inconveniencesincludes difficulty in determining the price of an object to bepurchased. This difficulty is a result of recent technology whichenables the bar code of an item to be scanned at the cash register,thereby eliminating the necessity for individual price tags on eachitem, and only requiring that a price and item description appear on ashelf where the item is stocked. Unfortunately, prices often change dueto promotions and the like, and are sometimes difficult to identify withregard to the prices displayed on the shelves. A further difficultyencountered at these stores involves the need of many customers to stickto a predetermined, precise budget, thereby necessitating that the costof items to be purchased be calculated and known before checkout toavoid delays or embarrassment as a result of a deficiency of funds.Finally, the most obvious difficulty all consumers encounter in largeself-service stores such as supermarkets is the endless waiting in line,waiting for all items to be purchased to be scanned and paid for. Thesedifficulties are illustrated by the invention of the devices such asthose recited in Bianco, U.S. Pat. No. 5,047,614, Collins, Jr., U.S.Pat. No. 4,929,819, Clyne, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,373,133, andO'Connor, U.S. Pat. No. 4,959,530, which utilize scanning of bar codesby individuals. These devices, however, do not provide the flexibilityof allowing a person to merely check the price of an item, or select topurchase the item, or select to return the item after selection as apurchase item. Further, these inventions are not structured to providethat a scanned item itself be clearly indicated as a purchase item.Additionally, none of the items in the prior art enable an individual tomaintain an accurate and up-to-date comparison of their actual purchasesand their budget by clearly indicating the total purchase amount at alltimes.

The present invention is designed precisely to meet the needs ofconsumers as well as stores, and make the shopping experience moreefficient and more enjoyable. Particularly, the present inventionincorporates the use of existing bar code scanning technology which amajority of stores already employ, thereby requiring no adaptation ofthe store's computer pricing techniques. Additionally, the presentinvention enables the buyer to keep a constant update of how much isbeing spent thereby assisting the maintaining of a budget when items areselected to be purchased or returned. Most importantly, the presentdevice enables the checkout process to be highly expedited through aneasily adapted data transmission which provides for all purchase datacollected by each consumer to be quickly and easily transmitted to aregister, thereby requiring only a rapid, cursory examination of theproducts to determine if they are properly designated as a purchaseitem. The present invention is a complete system which will greatlyassist consumers and store owners alike since it is easily adapted foruse and can be easily and non-complicatedly employed by the averageconsumer. Currently in the art, multiple devices and procedures would berequired to provide only a few of the functions of the device of thepresent invention and none allow a method of shopping as is possibleutilizing the present invention.

Further, it would be beneficial to provide a means of verifying thedesignation of items, which will not substantially deface a surface ofthe item bought. Accordingly, the present invention provides easilyverifiable and/or highly visible indicators which will enable a returneditem to be picked up by another consumer and effectively marked.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed towards a purchase monitoring deviceto be used by a shopper in a self-service store. Most self-servicestores include items having bar codes thereon which may be scanned toidentify the item and a price thereof, and the device of the presentinvention utilizes this technology. The device of the present inventionprimarily includes a portable handset which has a lightweight exteriorcasing. This exterior casing includes a distal front face, a distal rearface, a proximal front face, and a proximal rear face, disposed so as tomake the handset easy to grasp and utilize. Contained within the handsetare data storage means which store pricing and identification datacorresponding individual bar codes of store items. A bar code scanner,which is disposed in scanning position in the distal front face of thecasing, is adapted to scan an item's bar code and correspondinglyidentify its information stored within the data storage means. The barcode scanner is positioned such that upon passage of the distal frontface of the handset over the selected item its bar code is scanned.Additionally, the handset includes purchase designation means andnon-purchase designation means disposed in the distal front face of thecasing. The purchase designation means are adapted to selectivelydesignate an item over which the distal front face of the handset ispassed as a purchase item which is sought to be purchased. Thenon-purchase designation means similarly selectively designates one ofthe items previously designated as a purchase item as a non-purchaseitem upon passage of the distal front face of the handset thereover. Thepurchase designation means and non-purchase designation means areadapted to be selectively utilized simultaneously with the passage ofthe bar code scanner over the bar code on the selected item such that asingle pass of the distal front face of the handset over the item isnecessitated. Disposed in a distal rear face of the casing are displaymeans which display pricing and identification information thereon.Further contained within the handset are purchase memory means. Thepurchase memory means are adapted to store the particular pricing andidentification of data of each of the items designated as a purchaseitem by the shopper. Further, the purchase memory means adds all of theprices of the purchase items entered therein so as to provide a totalpurchase amount displayed on the display means, thereby providing ashopper with a constant update of how much they are spending. Positionedon a proximal rear face of the casing of the handset are a plurality ofbuttons. These buttons include a price check button, a purchase button,and a return button. The price check button is adapted to be pushedduring passage of the distal front face of the handset over the bar codeof a selected item such that the pricing and identification datacorresponding the item will be retrieved from the data storage means andbriefly displayed on the display means to enable a shopper to verify theprice and identity of the selected item. The purchase button is alsoadapted to be pushed during passage of the distal front face of thehandset over the bar code of the selected item, and when it is pushedduring this passage, the purchase designation means are simultaneouslycaused to designate the item scanned as one of the purchase items,thereby retrieving the pricing and identification data of that selecteditem, briefly displaying it on the display means, and entering it intothe purchase memory means for storage and addition to the running totalpurchase amount. The return button is adapted to be pushed duringpassage of the distal front face of the handset over the bar code of aselect one of the purchase items so as to cause the non-purchasedesignation means to designate that purchase item as a non-purchase itemand to retrieve the pricing and identification data corresponding thatpurchase item from the data storage means for matched removal of thatpricing and identification data from the purchase memory means,accordingly updating the total purchase amount. Disposed on the frontproximal face of the casing of the handset is a numeric key pad. Thenumeric key pad enables entry by the shopper of a budget amountcorresponding a maximum amount of money which can be spent by theshopper at the store. This budget amount is stored in the purchasememory means and is displayed on the display means, thereby enabling auser to constantly refer to the budget amount in determining how muchmore can be purchased. The handset, which includes its own independentpower source, includes a two-way data transmission connector in theproximal front face of the casing. This connector is particularlyadapted to enable updated pricing and identification data to betransmitted from a central store computer to the data storage meanswithin the handset by connecting the handset through the two-way datatransmission connector to the store's central computer. Additionally,the two-way data transmission connector is structured and disposed toenable the pricing and identification data corresponding all of thepurchase items to be transmitted from the purchase memory means to adata reception register at the checkout station of the store so as toprovide an itemized receipt of the purchase items to be printed. Thedata reception register is generally positioned at a purchaseconfirmation station of the device located at the store's checkoutstation. The purchase confirmation station is adapted to enable anemployee of the store to quickly verify that all items represented bythe shopper as purchase items are in fact purchase items, without theneed to individually scan each item or perform a detailed price checkand verification on every item.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a device which willenable shoppers to quickly and easily determine the price of a selecteditem.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a purchasemonitoring device which will keep an accurate and updated total purchaseamount, thereby enabling a user to constantly know how much money theyhave spent on the items selected during their shopping.

A further object of the present invention is to enable a user to quicklyand easily compare the total purchase amount of items to be bought witha maximum budget amount which they have pre-selected, thereby assuringthat the shopper will know how many items they can afford to actuallypurchase.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a purchasemonitoring device which can be easily updated to assure that currentpricing and identification data corresponding item bar codes is alwaysutilized.

An additional object of the present invention is to provide a purchasemonitoring device which will significantly expedite the checkoutprocedure by eliminating the need for a store clerk to individually scaneach item to be purchased at the checkout station, but merelynecessitates that the store clerk provide a cursory, rapid verificationof all items as they are quickly transferred from a user's shopping cartto a bagging area.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a purchasemonitoring device which can easily transfer information regarding theitems to be purchased to a store data reception register where a receiptmay be printed and payment received.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a purchasemonitoring device which is easy to utilize by any store customer andwill not require complex or costly adaptation of existing store pricingsystems which already utilize bar codes and bar code scanners toidentify and price items.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a securemethod of marking items which will not substantially detract from anappearance of a purchase item's container and will not create confusionfor a consumer to read or mark.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a fuller understanding of the nature of the present invention,reference should be had to the following detailed description taken inconnection with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the handset of the device of the presentinvention.

FIG. 2 is a top view of the front face of the handset of the device ofthe present invention.

FIG. 3 is a top view of the rear face of the handset of the presentinvention.

FIG. 4 is a side view of the handset of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of a proximal end of the handset of thepresent invention illustrating a first embodiment of the purchase andnon-purchase designation means.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the proximal end of the handset ofthe present device illustrating a second embodiment of the purchase andnon-purchase designation means.

FIG. 6a is a cross-sectional view of the proximal end of the handset ofthe present device illustrating a third embodiment of the purchase andnon-purchase designation means.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a checkout station of the storeutilizing the purchase confirmation station and data reception registerof the device of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a schematic block diagram illustrating the functioning of thedevice of the present invention.

Like reference numerals refer to like parts throughout the several viewsof the drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Shown throughout FIGS. 1-8, the present invention is directed towards apurchase monitoring device, generally indicated as 10. The monitoringdevice 10 is adapted to be used by a shopper in a self-service store ofthe type having numerous items with bar codes thereon to identify theitem and a price thereof. The monitoring device includes primarily aportable handset 20, illustrated in FIGS. 1-6a. The handset 20 includesa durable exterior casing having a distal front face 21, a proximalfront face 23, a distal rear face 25, and a proximal rear face 27oriented to facilitate holding and use by the shopper. Contained withinthe handset 20 are data storage means 57. These data storage means 57are adapted specifically to store information relating bar codes toappropriate identification and pricing data. Disposed in the distalfront face 21 of the handset 20 is a bar code scanner 30. The bar codescanner 30 is a standard-type scanning device which reads and recognizesbar code information on an item when the distal front face 21 of thehandset 20 is passed over the bar code of the item. Further disposed inthe distal front face 21 of the handset 20, adjacent the bar codescanner 30, is a three headed roller 50 which includes a first face, asecond face, and a third face, only one of the faces being exposed atone time through an opening 22 in the proximal front face 21 of thehandset 20. The roller 50 is adapted to contact the bar code of an itemupon passage of the front distal face 21 of the handset 20 over the barcode of the item so as to scan the item with the bar code scanner 30.The first face 51 of the roller 50 is normally in an exposed positionprotruding through the opening 22 in the distal front face 21 of thehandset 20 and has a neutral effect. The second face of the roller 50includes purchase designation means 53 thereon which are specificallyadapted to selectively designate the select item over which the distalfront face 21 of the handset 20 passes, as a purchase item which can beeasily identified as such at a checkout station. The third face of thethree headed roller 50 includes non-purchase designation means 52thereon adapted to selectively designate one of the previously selectedand designated purchase items as a non-purchase item which is no longerto be bought by the shopper. Alternatively, the roller 50 may includemore than three faces and, as in FIG. 10, may include only two faces,namely the second and third faces. Passage of the particular exposedface of the three headed roller 50 over the scanned item is adapted tobe simultaneous with the scanning by the bar code scanner 30, therebyassuring that a shopper cannot solely scan an item. The orientation ofthe three headed roller 50 through the opening 22 in the distal frontface 21 of the handset 20 is directed by a plurality of buttons 36, 37,and 38 disposed in the proximal rear face 27 of the handset 20. Thebuttons include a price check button 36, a purchase button 37, and areturn button 38, one of the buttons necessarily being pressed for thebar code scanner 30 to effectively scan the bar code of the selecteditem. When the price check button 36 is pressed during passage of thedistal front face 21 over the bar code of the selected item, theneutral, normally exposed, first face 51 of the roller 50 remainsexposed for rolling passage over the bar code of the item and the barcode scanner 30 reads the bar code such that the corresponding pricingand identification data relating to the scanned item will be retrievedfrom the data storage means 57 and momentarily displayed on displaymeans 32 positioned in the distal rear face 25 of the handset 20. Thedisplay means 32 include an LED display which is conveniently disposedfor quick reference by the shopper. When the purchase button 37 on thehandset 20 is pushed during passage of the distal front face 21 over thebar code of a selected item, the second face of the roller 50 having thepurchase designation means 53 thereon is rotated to the opening 22 forrolling passage over the selected item. The selected face of the roller50 is rotated to the opening 22 upon pushing one of the select buttonseither by electrical, mechanical, or magnetic actuation means, such asthose normally utilized in the art. Simultaneous with rolling passage ofthe purchase designation means 53 over the bar code of the selecteditem, so as to designate the item as a purchase item, the bar codescanner 30 reads the bar code on the item and retrieves the pricing andidentification data corresponding the item from the data storage means57 and, while displaying the information briefly on the display means32, enters the data into purchase memory means 59 contained within thehandset 20. The purchase memory means 59 are adapted to store thepricing and identification data of all of the purchase items selected bythe shopper, and sums the prices to maintain a running, total purchaseamount of all purchase items to be displayed on the display means 32such that the shopper may always be able to refer to the amount of moneythey are spending. Upon pressing the return button 38 in the handset 20,during passage of the distal front face 21 of the handset 20 over aselect item, which has previously been designated as a purchase item bythe purchase designation means 53, the third face of the roller 50having the non-purchase designation means 52 thereon rotates to anexposed position through the opening 22 in the distal front face 21 ofthe handset 20 for rolling passage over the bar code of the selectedpurchase item. Simultaneous with passage of the non-purchase designationmeans 52 over the bar code of the selected purchase item, the bar codescanner 30 identifies the bar code and retrieves the correspondingpricing and identification data from the data storage means 57 formatched removal of the pricing and identification data corresponding thepreviously selected purchase item from the purchase memory means 59 suchthat the price of the item will be removed from the running totalpurchase amount simultaneous with the designation of the item as anon-purchase item and no longer a purchase item.

Disposed in a proximal front face 23 of the handset 20 is a numeric keypad 40. The numeric key pad 40 is adapted to allow entry of a maximumbudget amount for storage within the purchase memory means 59. Thebudget amount is the maximum amount of money which the shopper wishes tospend at the store, and for ease of comparison is displayed on thedisplay means 32. Additionally, a first confirmation button 41 isdisposed on the proximal front face 23 of the handset 20 to indicatethat a number entered is in fact the budget amount to be stored withinthe purchase memory means 59 and displayed on the display means 32. Forconvenience to a shopper, the display means 32 includes three separatedisplay fields 33, 34, and 35, in the preferred embodiment. Thesedisplay fields include a large primarily display field 33 wherein thepricing and identification data corresponding an item which has justbeen scanned is displayed after scanning for reference and verificationby the shopper. A second, smaller display field 34 is adapted toperpetually display the updated total purchase amount as stored andcalculated by the purchase memory means 59. Finally, the third displayfield 35 is adapted to display the budget amount which was entered bymeans of the numeric key pad 40 and stored within the purchase memorymeans 59 such that the user can consistently refer to the budget amountin field 35 for comparison with the total purchase amount displayed infield 34. As a further assurance that the shopper is aware that thebudget amount has reached the total purchase amount, an indicator light43 is included to signal the user that the amounts have been equaled.Further disposed on the proximal front face 23 of the handset 20 is asecond confirmation button 42 which when pressed after scanning an itemprovides for display a price per unit weight ratio of the scanned itemas stored within the data storage means for the scanned item. This priceper unit weight ratio enables a shopper to compare values without theneed to independently calculate the ratio from the price of the item andthe weight displayed on the item container.

Turning to FIGS. 5, 6 and 6a, the purchase designation means 53 andnon-purchase designations means 52 includes three preferred embodiments.In the preferred embodiment, illustrated in FIG. 5, the bar code of eachitem includes a polarized metallic strip. The purchase designation means53 on the second face of the roller 50, includes a first polarizingmagnetic member, and the non-purchase designation means 52 on the thirdface of the roller 50 includes a second polarizing magnetic member.Initially, the metallic strip on the item is set to a non-purchasepolarization, preferably a positive polarization. Upon rolling passageof the first polarizing magnetic member of the purchase designationmeans 53 over the bar code, and accordingly the strip, the polarizationof the strip is changed to its opposite, a negative polarization,thereby designating the item as a purchase item because of thepolarization of the strip. Similarly, the second polarizing magneticmember of the non-purchase designation means 52 includes a polarizationeffect opposite that of the purchase designation means 53 such that whenit passes over the bar code and strip of an item previously designatedas a purchase item and accordingly having had the polarization of thestrip changed to a negative polarization, the polarization of the stripwill change to the positive non-purchase polarization which can beeasily identified upon checkout. Illustrated in FIG. 6, a secondembodiment of the purchase designation means 53' and non-purchasedesignation means 52' includes the use of stamping strips disposed inthe second and third faces of the roller 50. The purchase designationmeans 53' include a green ink stamping strip which upon rolling passageover the bar code of a selected item, leaves a green line across the barcode of the item to designate the item as a purchase item. In order toassure that the green ink stamping strip always includes sufficient ink,when the second face of the roller 50 is in its normally retractedposition, the green ink stamping strip 53' is disposed in ink rechargingcontact with a green ink reserve 55 disposed within the handset 20.Similarly, the non-purchase designation means 52' include a red inkstamping strip adapted to place a red line on the bar code of the itemupon rolling passage over the bar code. The red ink stamping strip 52'remains charged by being in ink recharging contact with a red inkreserve 54 disposed within the handset 20 when the third face of theroller is in its normally retracted position. The designation of an itemas a purchase item or non-purchase item utilizing this second embodimentof the purchase designation means 53' and non-purchase designation 52'relates to the quantity and ratio of green and red lines on the bar codeof the item. If there are an equal number of green and red lines, orthere are no lines, the item is a non-purchase item, and if there is onemore green line than there are red lines, the item is a purchase item.Further, the green ink and red ink which is utilized to make themarkings may be made of a time active ink. Such a time active ink wouldbe structured to be visible for only a predetermined period of timeafter which it dissolves or disappears such that it is no longer visibleon the bar code.

As yet another embodiment of the purchase designation means andnon-purchase designation means can include a pair of magnetic stripmarkers rather than the polarizing magnetic members. Also, only onemagnetic strip marker 56 can be included and be maintained in aretractable position or a permanently exposed position on an exposedface 51' of a marking member 50' contained within the handset. Themagnetic strip marker 50' is structured and disposed to correspondinglymark a magnetic stripe adhesively secured adjacent the bar code of theselect item to be purchased, so as to indicate whether select item isone of the purchase items or one of the non-purchase items.

Checking of the appropriate designation on the item is performed at apurchase confirmation station 76 located at the checkout station of thestore. The purchase confirmation station 76 includes a standardunloading counter 71 having a conveyor belt 72 disposed therein. Whenutilizing the second embodiment of the purchase and non-purchasedesignation means 53' and 52', confirmation and quick verification thatall items purported to be purchase items are in fact purchase items isperformed solely by an employee of the store who performs a cursoryexamination of all items as they pass on the conveyor belt to verify theexistence of more green lines than red lines. This procedure issignificantly quicker than scanning each individual item by the employeeas only a rapid cursory check needs to be performed. When utilizing thefirst embodiment of the purchase and non-purchase designation means 53and 52, the purchase confirmation station 76, as illustrated in FIG. 7,includes detection means 73, preferably in the form of polarizationindicators, spanning the conveyor belt 72 such that all items must passthrough the detection means 73. The detection means 73 are structured todetect any items having a positive non-purchase polarization. If one ofsuch items having a positive non-purchase polarization is detected, thedetection means 73 cause the conveyor belt 72 to immediately stopthereby identifying all items within a specifically delineateddesignation detection area 74 between the detection means 73 as itemswhich must be independently verified by the employee by checking themagainst a listing of all purchase items contained within the purchasememory means 59 in handset 20. As to the third embodiment the selectitems are positioned such that the magnetic strip is disposed in anexposed readable orientation, such as face down to pass over a magneticstripe reader.

In order to facilitate the printing of a receipt and various otherrequirements of shopping, the handset 20 includes a two-way datatransmission connector 60 in the proximal front face 23 of the handset20. As illustrated in FIG. 8, the two-way data transmission connector 60is adapted to be connected to the central store computer 65, prior touse, for transmittal of updated pricing and identification datacorresponding items within the store to the data storage means 57 of thehandset 20, thereby assuring that updated information relating to itemswithin the store is maintained during sales, promotions, and the like.Additionally, the two-way data transmission connector 60 functions totransmit all pricing and identification data stored within the purchasememory means 59, and corresponding all purchase items, to a datareception register 61 located with the purchase confirmation station 76at the store check out station. The data reception register 61 include aspecially adapted handset receptacle 62 wherein a shopper's handset 20is positioned upon checkout. The receptacle 62 is adapted to place thehandset 20 in transmitting connection with the data reception register61 such that the information stored within the purchase memory means 59can be transmitted to the register 61 for printing of an itemizedreceipt which facilitates verification and receipt of payment at theregister 61.

In order to be fully portable, the handset 20 includes an independentpower source contained therein. Preferably, the power source 47 includesa primary power source 48 and an auxiliary power source 49. The primarypower source 48 is in the form a rechargeable battery pack disposedwithin the casing of the handset 20 which through an externallyaccessible power input plug 46 is adapted to be recharged after it runslow. The auxiliary power source 49 includes a reserve battery whichenables the handset 20 to remain powered for a short period of timeafter the primary power source 48 has been exhausted. In order toindicate that the primary power source 48 is running low, an indicatorlight 44 is disposed on a proximal front face 23 of the handset 20 toindicate to the shopper that the primary power source 48 is running lowand the situation should be remedied. The auxiliary power source 49 ishighly beneficial because it enables a shopper, upon noticing that theprimary power source 48 is running low, to either transmit all datastored within the purchase memory means 59 to the data receptionregister 61, or to a second fully charged handset 20' for continuedshopping without losing the previously scanned purchase data.

The present invention as described illustrates the preferred embodimentsat the time of invention and variations consistent with the intentclaimed herein and the doctrine of equivalents should also be includedwithin the scope of this invention.

Now that the invention has been described,

What is claimed is:
 1. To be used by a shopper in a self-service storehaving items including bar codes thereon to identify the item and aprice thereof, a purchase monitoring device comprising:a portablehandset, said handset including an exterior casing having a distal frontface, a distal rear face, a proximal front face, and a proximal rearface, data storage means within said handset structured and disposed tostore pricing and identification data corresponding individual barcodes, a bar code scanner disposed in said distal front face of saidcasing so as to scan the bar code on a selected item upon passage ofsaid distal front face of said handset thereover, purchase designationmeans in said distal front face of said casing structured and disposedto selectively designate the select item over which said distal frontface of said handset is passed as a purchase item sought to bepurchased, non-purchase designation means in said distal front face ofsaid casing structured and disposed to selectively designate one of saidpurchase items, upon passage of said distal front face of said handsetthereover, as a non-purchase item which is not to be purchased, displaymeans disposed in said distal rear face of said casing and beingstructured and disposed to display pricing and identificationinformation thereon, purchase memory means structured and disposed tostore the pricing and identification data of each of said purchase itemsselected by the shopper, a plurality of buttons in said proximal rearface of said casing of said handset, said buttons including a pricecheck button structured and disposed to be pushed during passage of saiddistal front face of said handset over the bar code of the selected itemsuch that the pricing and identification data corresponding the selecteditem will be retrieved from said data storage means and brieflydisplayed on said display means, thereby enabling the shopper to verifythe price and identity of the selected item, said buttons furtherincluding a purchase button, said purchase button being structured anddisposed to be pushed during passage of said distal front face of saidhandset over the bar code of the selected item such that said purchasedesignation means will designate the select item as one of said purchaseitems and such that the pricing and identification data correspondingthe selected item will be retrieved from said data storage means forbrief display on said display means and entry into said purchase memorymeans, said buttons also including a return button, said return buttonbeing structured and disposed to be pushed during passage of said distalfront face of said handset over the bar code a select one of saidpurchase items such that said non-purchase designation means willdesignate said purchase items as one of said non-purchase items and suchthat the pricing and identification data corresponding said purchaseitem will be retrieved from said data storage means for matched removalof the pricing and identification data from said purchase memory means,said purchase memory means being further structured and disposed to addthe price of all of said purchase items entered therein so as to providea total purchase amount to be displayed on said display means, saidhandset further including a numeric key pad disposed in said frontproximal face of said casing, said numeric key pad being structured anddisposed to enable entry by the shopper of a budget amount correspondinga maximum amount of money to be spent by the shopper at the store, saidbudget amount being stored in said purchase memory means and displayedon said display means, a power source in said handset, a two-way datatransmission connector in said proximal front face of said casing, saidconnector being structured and disposed to enable updated pricing andidentification data to be transmitted from a central store computer tosaid data storage means within said handset, and being structured anddisposed to enable pricing and identification data corresponding saidpurchase items to be transmitted from said purchase memory means to adata reception register at a checkout station of the store where anitemized receipt of said purchase items is printed, a purchaseconfirmation station at said checkout station of said store, saidpurchase confirmation station being structured and disposed to enablequick verification that all items represented by the shopper as purchaseitems are in fact purchase items, an opening in said proximal front faceof said casing adjacent said bar code scanner, and said handset furtherincluding a marking member, said marking member including an exposedface which is exposed through said opening in said proximal front faceof said casing adjacent said bar code scanner, said exposed face beingdisposed for passage over the bar code of the selected item upon passageof said proximal front face of said casing, and accordingly, said barcode scanner, over the bar code of the selected item.
 2. A purchasemonitoring device as recited in claim 1 wherein said handset furtherincludes at least one confirmation button disposed in said proximalfront face of said casing, said confirmation button being structured anddisposed to be pushed and accordingly indicate that a number beingentered on said key pad is said budget amount.
 3. A purchase monitoringdevice as recited in claim 1 wherein said handset includes a secondconfirmation button disposed in said proximal front face of said casing,said second confirmation button being structured and disposed to bepushed and accordingly cause a price per unit weight ratio of apreviously scanned item, as stored in said data storage means, to bedisplayed on said display means.
 4. A purchase monitoring device asrecited in claim 1 wherein said display means includes an LED display.5. A purchase monitoring device as recited in claim 1 wherein saidhandset includes signaling means structured and disposed to indicatewhen said budget amount has been equaled by said total purchase amount.6. A purchase monitoring device as recited in claim 1 wherein said powersource includes a primary power source and an auxiliary power source. 7.A purchase monitoring device as recited in claim 6 wherein saidauxiliary power source includes a reserve battery structured anddisposed to enable data stored within said purchase memory means of afirst one of said handsets to be stored for subsequent transfer throughsaid data transmission connector to said data reception register or asecond one of said handsets when said primary power source in said firstone of said handsets is exhausted.
 8. A purchase monitoring device asrecited in claim 7 wherein said handset includes a battery low warningsignal structured and disposed to indicate when said primary powersource is low in charge.
 9. A purchase monitoring device as recited inclaim 8 wherein said primary power source includes a rechargeablebattery pack disposed within said casing, said battery pack including anexternally accessible power input plug structured and disposed to enablerecharging of said battery pack.
 10. Purchase monitoring device asrecited in claim 1 wherein said marking member includes a multi-facedroller, said roller including at least two faces, only one of said facesbeing exposed at one time through said opening in said proximal frontface of said casing adjacent said bar code scanner, said exposed one ofsaid faces being disposed for rolling passage over the bar code of theselected item upon passage of said proximal front face of said casing,and accordingly, said bar code scanner, over the bar code of theselected item.
 11. A purchase monitoring device as recited in claim 10wherein said multi-face roller includes a three-headed roller,saidthree-headed roller including a first face, a second face, and a thirdface, only one of said faces being exposed at one time through saidopening in said proximal front face of said casing adjacent said barcode scanner, said exposed one of said faces being disposed for rollingpassage over the bar code of the selected item upon passage of saidproximal front face of said casing, and accordingly, said bar codescanner, over the bar code of the selected item, said first face of saidroller being normally said exposed one of said faces and having noeffect upon rolled passage over the bar code of the selected item, saidsecond face of said roller including said purchase designation meanstherein, said second face being rotated to be said exposed one of saidfaces during pushing of said purchase button, said third face of saidroller including said non-purchase designation means therein, said thirdface being rotated to be said exposed one of said faces during pushingof said return button, said purchase designation means including a greenink stamping strip structured and disposed to place a green line acrossthe bar code of the selected item upon rolling passage of said secondface of said roller over the bar code, said green ink stamping stripbeing structured and disposed to be in ink recharging contact with agreen ink reserve disposed within said casing when said second face isin its normally retracted position, said non-purchase designation meansincluding a red ink stamping strip structured and disposed to place ared line across the bar code of the selected item upon rolling passageof said third face of said roller over the bar code, said red inkstamping strip being structured and disposed to be in ink rechargingcontact with a red ink reserve disposed within said casing when saidthird face is in its normally retracted position, and said green ink andsaid red ink including time active ink structured to be visible for apredetermined period of time after which it is no longer visible on thebar code.
 12. A method of self service shopping comprising the stepsof:getting a portable purchase monitoring device, selecting an item tobe purchased, scanning a bar code of the item to be purchased with theportable purchase monitoring device so as to identify a price of theitem, identifiably designating the specific item to be purchased as apurchase item simultaneously with scanning the bar code of the item tobe purchased, storing purchase and pricing information regarding theitems in said portable purchase monitoring device, totaling the pricesof all of the items scanned and designated as purchase items to enableverification at any time, scanning a bar code of an item previouslyscanned as one of said items to be purchased and designated as one ofsaid purchase items with the portable purchase monitoring device so asto identify the price of the item and simultaneously designate the itemas a non-purchase item which the user no longer wishes to purchase,subtracting the prices of all of the items scanned a second time anddesignated as one of said non-purchase items from the stored total inthe purchase monitoring device connecting the portable purchasemonitoring device to a data reception register, transmitting thepurchase and pricing information regarding the purchase items to thedata reception register, and verifying that all items represented by auser as said purchase items have been scanned and are in fact purchaseitems by checking that the item has been identifiably designated as oneof said purchase items.